While it’s not typically life-threatening, atrial fibrillation increases your risk for stroke and heart failure. The good news is that if you know you have atrial fibrillation, you can get treatment and have the best care possible.

How Atrial Fibrillation Can Cause Blood Clots and Stroke

Because the heart beats and contracts irregularly in atrial fibrillation, blood flow may slow or pool and cause your blood to clot. A blood clot that forms as a result of atrial fibrillation is an example of what's called arterial thromboembolism. If the clot breaks free, it can travel through the circulatory system and lodge in an artery in your brain, causing a stroke. These thromboembolic strokes are potentially devastating.

Symptoms of atrial fibrillation, also called afib, can differ for each person. While some people are immediately aware of their heart rhythm change, others may not feel anything. Symptoms can include mild fatigue, shortness of breath, difficulty breathing, dizziness, palpitations, or chest pain. If you experience any of these symptoms, you need to see your doctor.

Atrial Fibrillation and Stroke Facts

As you age, atrial fibrillation is an important condition to keep on your health radar. Here are five important facts about afib to remember:

Stroke risk is increased by five times in someone who has atrial fibrillation. Strokes associated with atrial fibrillation are estimated to account for 15 percent of the 15 million strokes that occur worldwide every year. How severe a stroke is depends on the size of the blood clot and how large the blocked artery is.

Strokes associated with atrial fibrillation have high mortality rates. Nearly one-quarter of patients with atrial fibrillation-associated strokes die within 30 days of the stroke. This is an alarmingly high rate in a short period of time.

The risk of developing an atrial fibrillation heart condition increases as you age. After age 40, the lifetime risk of developing atrial fibrillation is approximately one in four. Because women generally live longer than men, more women than men experience this heart condition.

You can help reduce your risk. Current clinical guidelines recommend taking prescription anticoagulants in pill form to reduce your risk of atrial fibrillation-associated stroke if you have at least one risk factor. The conditions that put you at risk include having heart failure, hypertension, diabetes, a prior stroke, and being age 75 or older. Talk with your physician — they may use a scoring system called the CHA2DS2-VASc stroke score to quantify your individual risk.

Atrial fibrillation is unique in that the episodes of irregular heartbeat may happen rarely, or it may become an ongoing or long-term heart problem that lasts for years. Early identification and management is critical. Be proactive and talk with your physician; they will be impressed with how much you already know about atrial fibrillation!

Illustration: Roy Scott/Corbis

Elaine M. Hylek, MD, MPH, is a professor of medicine at the Boston University School of Medicine and associate director of the education and training division of the Boston University Clinical Translational Science Institute. Her research areas include arterial and venous thromboembolism (VTE), efficacy and safety of anticoagulant therapies, and atrial fibrillation. Dr. Hylek is a member of the World Thrombosis Day steering committee.

Last Updated:4/3/2016

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